Field
The present invention relates to the field of receptacles, and more specifically to receptacles that contain objects such as automotive wheel nuts.
Background
Tire changing procedures and practices have become commonplace, especially in countries with cold winter climates. Before the first snowfall, and shortly after the last snowfall of the winter season, it is habitual for persons to change the tires on their cars, opting for a softer compound tire with a more open tread pattern for the winter months and a harder tread compound tire with a less open (finer) tread pattern for summer months. In fact, snow tires are required by law in some states and provinces, as is the case in the province of Quebec, Canada. To increase tire and rim longevity it is much easier and better that the summer rim be removed with the summer tire, such that both are replaced and reinstalled before and after the winter season. However, the requirement to change tires is not only limited to seasonal changes. Indeed, leasing tires and wheels has become a growing business in North America for drivers who want different wheels for aesthetic or business purposes. When removing the tires, one must first remove the wheel nuts. Often, the different wheels require a different nut so the off season wheel nuts (or bolts), as well as the corresponding locker nut, are stored with the tires themselves, or put in a location to be found when the rims need to be reinstalled on the vehicle. Since the rims are usually removed for many months, this leads to misplacing the wheel nuts (or bolts) and locker nut, or losing them altogether.
Many patents have already been devised, with specific purpose to store equipment or various objects, along with the rim of the vehicle by fastening a container to said rim. Such types of patents include U.S. Pat. No. 1,684,160 (Tinker), U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,614 (Guar), U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,017 (Buck), U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,285 (Kim) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,036,697 (Hwang et al.). Tinker's device provides for storage space within a spare tire rim, to be utilized for carrying various objects such as tools, accessories, etc. The container is secured to the rim by means of clamping the container around the rim. Guar also discloses a storage device for a spare tire. More specifically, Guar teaches a closed bottom container which fastens to the tire with the same fasteners that mount the wheel to the mounting bracket. Meanwhile, Buck discloses a storage device which mounts on the exterior wheel of a vehicle. Buck's device is mounted to the rim by means of a mounting shaft which extends outwardly from the rim and one can screw the container onto the mounting shaft and thus onto the rim. Kim discloses a receptacle which is again adapted to be secured to a rim of a vehicle Kim's device is mounted onto the rim by means of securing an external thread of a cover to an internal thread of the receptacle by the use of a bolt. Finally, Hwang's device discloses another type of storage device to fit inside of the rim of a vehicle, and attached thereon by means of its shape. Indeed, Hwang's invention does not specifically explain or teach of a means of secure the container within the rim, only that it fits snugly within it.
Unfortunately, all of these patents have similar problems, or other issues that need to be overcome. Namely, Tinker, Guar, Kim and Hwang's devices cannot apply to various shapes and sizes of rims. They are meant to fit within specific types of rims due to their method of attachment to said rims due to their own specific shape and size. Further, while they are meant to be mounted on the inside of a spare tire, Buck's device is specifically meant to be mounted to the outside of the rim. While this method may prove useful for easy access, it is completely inconvenient for storage purposes when rims are stored tightly together and stacked on top of each other. Another issue is that Guarr, Hwang and Tinker's devices do not use a single securing pin or bolt to secure their respective devices within the rims.
Overall, all five enumerated patents have problems that need to be overcome in order for a device to properly utilize a single securing pin to quickly, securely and conveniently fasten a container that can contain wheel nuts and the locker nut to rims that have been removed from a vehicle and stored and/or transported for a certain amount of time. The present device can overcome all of the aforementioned issues, and is described in further detail below.